New Hewlett Packard Company chief executive Mark Hurd smiles during a news conference at HP headquarters in Palo Alto, Calif., Wednesday, March 30, 2005. (AP Photo/Paul Sakuma, file)

Hewlett-Packard Co. reported a slight boost in quarterly earnings, inching past Wall Street's expectations, but the company's new leader lowered expectations for the current quarter and acknowledged that "overall performance leaves room for improvement."

For the three months ended April 30, Palo Alto-based HP reported a profit of $966 million, or 33 cents per share, up 9 percent from $884 million, or 29 cents per share, in the second fiscal quarter of 2004.

Excluding special items, such as $177 million in buyouts and other work force reduction expenses, HP would have earned $1.07 billion, or 37 cents per share, up 4 percent from $1.03 billion, or 34 cents per share, in the same period a year earlier.

Quarterly revenue was $21.6 billion, up 7 percent from $20.1 billion in the same quarter a year ago. If adjusted for the declining value of the dollar, HP sales would have grown only 4 percent.

HP's quarterly results were 1 cent ahead of expectations of analysts polled by Thomson Financial, who forecast 36 cents per share on sales of nearly $21.4 billion.

"HP had a solid quarter," said Mark Hurd, whom the board named chief executive and president in March. "Nevertheless, our overall performance leaves room for improvement in many of our businesses. We expect to provide details as soon as our plans are finalized that will move us toward that objective."

HP shares rose 54 cents, or 2.6 percent, to close at $21.55 before the earnings report was released Tuesday afternoon, just below a 52-week high of $22.26. The stock added another 3.5 percent, or 75 cents, in extended trading.

(AP)

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